Sprouted

For awhile now I have wanted to grow sprouts but for some reason couldn't get around to it. I bought a nifty little kit that contained seeds and a small canvass bag but then when I went to make it, I couldn't think of a good place to hang the bag after each rinse, imagining the endless dripping if I were to somehow manage to suspend the bag over the sink. Frankly I could see struggling with that bag just to produce a few sprouts which I couldn't see growing, having to wash that bag out and really I don't need a dingy, wet, brown sack to cheer me up in the middle of winter, so I used the bag for something else (see "Self-Inefficiency" August 2013). Other people poke holes in lids or buy specialty jars produced for the purpose of growing sprouts but guess what, they are just holes in a lid on a jar.

This sad sack will not work for us

Recently my son tried some sprouts on a sandwich and loved them! Well that was the impetus we needed. So we scoured the Internet for directions, sought advice from friends and family who had grown them, but we were looking for something that would work easily in our kitchen and we came up with this. If you aren't growing sprouts you should be because it is the easiest thing in the world. Clean, fun and fast, three of my favourite things!

You need a slanted dish rack

Next you need some mason jars with the screw on bands and some cheesecloth, found at the grocery store, seeds to try out and water. I bought my seeds at a health food grocery store. They were called "sandwich blend" organic, sprout seeds but many organic seeds will work. Make sure that they are not seeds treated with chemicals for growing in the ground. If they are GMO they may be bred not to germinate. I started with seeds for sprouting to simplify the process but you can try others. Other than that grow legumes for cooking in stir fries or different blends for sandwiches. Alfalfa is one of the more common types. They sure brighten up a  sandwich or salad!

Things you will need 

1-Place 1/4 cup of seeds in the bottom of your clean (large) mason jar

2-Place cheesecloth over the mouth of the jar, then screw on the screw band and fill with water, drain, then fill again.








3-Soak for a few hours, rinse and drain all of the water out then leave to sit on your dish rack, upside down for the rest of the day.

4- Rinse once in the morning and once at night, eat when they look like the sprouts in the store. Be sure they are draining all the way, no standing water. When finished, store in the fridge and eat. That is it. Ours sprouted within a couple of days and taste delicious!

The seeds in clear jars in plain view are interesting to watch and children (and let's face it, us!)find it interesting and educational to see how a seed germinates and grows into food. The amount of time, space, equipment and preparation is very minimal. As I search for fresh, local and cheap salad fixings this fall and winter, I can look even closer than my hoop house garden. Sprouts, super wonderful food grown in your kitchen!